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History of Baker

Baker began in 1907, established along a well-traveled trail extending from Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, and South Carolina. The town was named after the Reverend R. G. Baker, J. D. C. Newton's father-in-law; its previous name was Cobb. Early residents earned money as cattle raisers, sheep herders, loggers, and navy store traders who dealt mostly in turpentine and its associated goods.

Baker's growth led to the development of a bank, a pharmacy, a shop for ladies, a doctor's office, a general store, a post office, a hotel, a turpentine distillery, several cotton gins, and Shaw's Blueberry farm, the world's largest at the time.

Baker's Block Museum, refurbished from the general store mentioned above, opened in July of 1996 after a great deal of restoration. The original building was constructed in 1908, in an old pen used to house cattle waiting to be transported via railway for sale at market. Baker's historical association bought the property for restoration and use as a museum. The Baker Block Museum now displays local American Indian artifacts, as well as local historical items such as stills used to make turpentine.

The first photo above shows the eastern wall before Larry Demmers painted a wonderful mural over it. The second photo shows the building's western wall; local prisoners painted the scene which depicts plants and wildlife that lived in the nearby forest.